Tales of Arise’s stunning commercial success (1 million copies sold in 7 days), assures that the series will continue into the future (yay!).
So far (I am writing the game’s official review for the site), Arise, is by far, the best Tales game that I have played since Tales of Vesperia. That said, Namco clearly made a huge effort to bring its Tales formula into modern times with the Unreal Engine 4, and the company also made a tremendous effort in marketing the game. The approach seems to be paying off.
Its 1 million units sold, in just a week, means that after 26 years (since the first series’ entry), the Tales series finally broke through its ‘niche’ market barriers, and it has arrived as a force that can commercially compete with Final Fantasy, and Dragon Quest.
I am happy about this, and I believe most JRPG fans should be excited about Tales of Arise’s early commercial success, as well. Tales of Arise did not really abandon its old formula. It remains a linear story driven adventure, accompanied by important improvements to its presentation, and battle system.
It is a game that will please older fans, as there are no jarring deviations from the formula that we have known, and loved, but it is ‘modern’ enough (save anywhere features, fairly free form battle system, etc.), that new comers (even WRPG fans) will find something to enjoy here.
So far, the game is a stunning triumph. Stay tuned for our official review soon.
Sega is Making a New RPG…This is What We Know?
Sega’s new RPG will be announced (and showcased) at Tokyo’s Game Show in a few weeks on October 1st (which ironically is my birthday).
Here is the teaser trailer:
Going by the trailer, the game’s artwork, as well as its music are top notch. Other than that, rumors, and speculation flared all over the net yesterday with many gamers hoping for a Skies of Arcadia revival, and others claiming that this was the newest entry on the Shining series instead.
My take? It is not Skies of Arcadia 2 (there goes my birthday present), or a Skies of Arcadia related game, at all. Sega continues to (frustratingly) ignore our pleas for a simple HD remaster of what is, perhaps, the best RPG that they have ever made.
Instead, it appears that Sega’s new RPG is a mobile phone game. Yeah, I know, not what we wanted to hear, but it seems (if the rumors are true) that Sega is trying to cash in the mobile RPG craze that is taking hold of Asia.
A few months ago, we reported that Level-5 encountered unprecedented success with its Ni No Kuni series, as Cross Worlds’ entered the mobile market as a MMORPG. That said, it is hard to say what the game might be about based solely on a short trailer.
However, Gematsu has released a small translation of the trailer’s Japanese text which goes translates into something like this:
What is an RPG?
But is this really how it should be?
Let’s take a one-time journey, but not on a straight path.
[Set off on a one-time journey.] | [Continue your journey as usual.]
Will they smile? Or will they grieve?
The choices that create the story are entirely up to you.
You will undoubtedly discover what it means to play a true RPG.
The trailer hints at a non-linear, choice driven storyline. That’s all we know, so far, about Sega’s newest – soon to be revealed – JRPG.
So, About Skies of Arcadia…
It is not happening, but hey, Tales of Arise is showing that there is a market, and a growing demand for single player, story driven JRPGs. Maybe Sega will pay attention, and remaster the ‘Legends’ version of the game (but hopefully, with the Dreamcast’s sound quality) at some point.
As a digital only release, a Skies of Arcadia Remaster should be an easy cash grab for the company.
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